Sweet Dreams and Better Days Ahead
by EmilyPrentissHotchner
Summary: Oneshot. Emily comes back home to visit Jack and Hotch...and Hotch has a secret that he's been keeping for years that he wants to reveal to Emily. Accompaniment piece to 'A Nightmare and Bad Days'. Written for emilyhotchnerforever and Persephone Muse.


**Author's Note: Here it is. Finally. The accompaniment piece to _A Nigthmare and Bad Days_, that I promised to do for the lovely _emilyhotchnerforever_ and _Persphone Muse_ back in February when they asked in their awesome reviews they left me for my story _A Nightmare and Bad Days._ I'm sorry it took me so long to write this little gem.**

**Nonetheless, I sincerely hope you enjoy reading this little gem. As always, thank you so much for reading!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds or any of its characters.**

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"A friend can tell you things you don't want to tell yourself." ~Frances Ward Weller

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"Daddy?"

Hotch looked down to see Jack with a question dancing in his eyes. "Yeah, buddy?"

"Is Emily still going to call tonight?" the boy asked curiously.

A tiny smile touched his lips as a brief image of the past month of Jack and him talking to Emily on the phone flashed through his mind. "She's supposed to call later tonight."

"You promise that she will call later tonight?" Jack asked worried that Emily won't call.

"Yes, I promise you that Emily will call later tonight, but if she doesn't call we will call her, and then if we can't get a hold of her we will call Clyde Easter to see if he's heard anything from her," Hotch answered. He saw that Jack still had that worried look on his small face and he immediately added, "You have nothing to worry about because Emily kept her promise to you so far by calling everyday and every night just to talk to you. And another promise that she's keeping to you, is her promise to come and visit you when she gets the chance." He gave Jack a reassuring smile and it seemed to erase the worried look from the young boy's face.

The worried look on Jack's face turned into a smile because he knew his dad was right that Emily had kept her promise to him so far by calling him every day and every night, and he also knew that Emily is keeping her promise to come and visit him when she gets the chance.

"Daddy do you have an idea when Emily will come and visit?" Jack asked wanting to know if his dad has a slightest idea when_ his_ _Emily_ will come and visit him.

Hotch shook his head a little, before he said, "I have no idea when Emily will come and visit us."

Jack raised an eyebrow at his dad, and with a slightly serious tone, he said, "Miss Emily only said she's coming to visit me. Not you, just me."

"Emily will be visiting both of us when she comes to visit." Hotch said with a firm tone in his voice.

"Emily is only visiting me because she loves me more," Jack told his father still with a serious tone in his small voice.

_Only seven years old and arguing with me that Emily loves him more. I just might as well agree with him or this little argument is never going to end._ "Yes, Emily loves you more," he said with a smile.

"Yes, she loves me more. I'm glad you finally agree with me." Jack said with a smile. "Now only if you will agree with me that Emily will be visiting me and not you when she comes to visit."

"I will agree with you that Emily loves you more, but I'm not agreeing with you that she's only visiting you when she comes to visit because she will be visiting both of us." Hotch said with that firm tone in his voice.

"Maybe we should call her right now and ask her who she will be visiting when she comes to visit," the young boy suggested to his father because he wanted to prove to his dad that Emily is only visiting him when she comes to visit.

"No we are not going to call Emily right now because she should be calling us in about two hours from now." Hotch said, while shaking his head at his son. "How about right now, you go and pick out a movie we can watch together, and by the time the movie is over, Emily should call?" he suggested to his son hoping that it will end their little argument for a while about who Emily will be visiting when she comes to visit them.

"Fine, I will pick out a movie we can watch together, but when Emily calls tonight, I'm going to ask her which one of us she will be visiting when she comes to visit." Jack told his father just before walking over to their DVD stand.

~.~.~

Jack was standing at his and his dad's DVD stand trying to choose a movie they can watch together, when there was a knock on the door.

"I will go and see who is at the door." Hotch told his son, as he walked to his apartment door to answer it. Opening his apartment door he was surprise to see who was standing at his door. "Emily, what are you doing here?" he asked surprised, as he invited her inside.

"Well, I did promise a certain little boy who lives here that I would come and visit when I got the chance." Emily answered with a smile.

"When did you get in?" Hotch asked just as his son came running towards Emily.

"I got in this morning." She said, just as Jack wrapped his small arms around her waist.

"You could have called me. I would have picked you up from the airport. I don't care how early it was, I would have drove to the airport just to pick you up." Hotch told her, while giving her a small smile.

Emily shook her head a little at Hotch. "I know, but I had to visit my mother for a while," she said with a small smile. "And besides I wanted to surprise Jack, and if I did call you, Aaron you would have ruin the surprise because you can't keep a secret too well." Emily teased.

"I can to keep a secret very well," Hotch retorted back to her. "And I've been keeping a secret for years, and now I might not tell you what it is, Emily." He teased, a handsome smirk playing at his lips.

"What kind of secret are you keeping?" she asked eagerly wanted to know what her best friend's secret is.

"I'm not going to tell you." He said, as he saw that his best friend was _so _eager to know his secret.

"Well I'm sure Jack will tell me, if he knows your secret." Emily said with a smile. Looking down at Jack and smiling at him, she asked, "Jack, buddy do you know what your dad's secret is?"

"I don't know my dad's secret, but if I did, I will tell you." Jack admitted to Emily with a smile. "Emily you only came to visit me, right?" he asked changing the subjected suddenly.

"I came to visit both you and your dad because I miss you both." Emily said with a smile to Hotch and Jack. She saw that Jack looked a little upset about her answer, she soon added, "But I mostly came to visit you because I missed you the most."

Jack immediately smiled at her, before saying, "Good." He looked at his dad with a grin on his face, he asked, "Did you hear that dad, Emily mostly came to visit me?"

"Oh, really now, she only came to visit you?" Hotch asked with a smile.

"Yeah, but she's visiting you_ too_ just a little because she doesn't want you to be upset." Jack told his dad, while smiling at him. He grabbed Emily's hand with his hand, and said, "Come on Emily let's go watch _Rise of the Guardians_!"

"Are you going to watch the movie_ too_, Aaron?" Emily asked, as she was being dragged over to his couch by his seven year old son.

"Yeah, I'm going to watch the movie _too_, Emily." Hotch answered with a smile, as he followed her and his son over to the couch.

"Have you seen this movie yet, Emily?" Jack asked her, as he sat between her and his dad on the couch.

"No, I haven't seen _Rise of the Guardians_, yet." Emily admitted to the young boy.

Jack smiled at her, and said, "You are going to love it." He soon hit play on the movie.

~.~.~

The movie was now over with, and Jack was fast asleep against Emily's side. He had fallen asleep halfway through the movie.

Emily let a tiny smile touch her lips as she looked at the sleeping boy sleeping against her side. She placed a small kiss to the top of his head, before whispering, "I really loved the movie."

Hotch couldn't help but smile as he took in the sight of his son sleeping against his best friend's side. The sight of his son laying asleep against Emily's side made him wonder; if he should tell Emily his secret that he's been keeping for years because it does have to do with her and he knew that he should tell her soon before his chance is gone. He looked at Emily and smiled at her, and then he looked down at his sleeping son because Jack was the deciding factor of Hotch's choice to tell Emily his secret, and he always wants what's best for his son and he knows how much Jack adores Emily, so if telling his secret to her is the best choice for his son and him, especially for his son. He was going to take the chance and reveal his secret to her before she goes back to London.

He watched her lovingly as she just watched his son sleep so peacefully next to her. Sitting there watching her with his son, he knew that revealing his secret to her, that he's been keeping for years from her is going to be the right choice for him and his son.

Hotch gave Emily a friendly smile, before saying, "I'm going to put Jack to bed in his room really quick, and I will be right back." He stood up from the couch and took his sleeping son in his arms.

Emily stood up from the couch and placed a kiss to Jack's forehead. "Sweet dreams," she whispered to the sleeping boy, just before Hotch took him to his bedroom and put him to bed.

And sure enough, Hotch was back in the living room less than five minutes later, taking a seat next to Emily on the couch. "Are you, alright?" he asked noticing that she's being really quiet right now.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she answered barely above a whisper.

Hotch didn't buy it however because he's known her for years, and he can always tell when something is bothering her and right now he knew that something is bothering her. "Are you sure, you're fine?" he asked concerned hoping that she will tell him the truth about what's bothering her.

Emily hated that he knew her so well, and only one thought was running through her mind._ I hate profilers, especially the handsome ones. _"Yeah, I'm fine," she said clearly lying to him.

"Are you sure, you're fine?" Hotch asked her again.

"Yeah, why?" Emily asked, wondering why he wanted to know if she was really fine.

"Because you are being awful quiet right now and I can tell that something is bothering you," he explained to her as he looked into her beautiful eyes. "And I would say what's bothering you…is that bad day you had that we never talked about because Beth was the one to answer my phone when you needed me the most." Hotch knew that _bad day_ was what's bothering Emily, when he saw her tears escape from her eyes. "I know we have never talked about that day because you didn't want to talk about it. But do you want to tell me about that bad day now?" he asked her, as more of her tears escaped from her eyes, and at that time he pulled her into his arms.

"I know you want to know what caused my bad day that day, but I'm not ready to tell you nor will I ever be ready to tell you about what caused my bad day that day," she said, as she tried to control her tears from escaping from her eyes because she didn't want Hotch to see her cry too much. She really didn't know why she didn't want him to see her cry, maybe it was because she always thought she had be strong around him because she _hardly _seen him cry, maybe just a handful of times. But she knew that every strong _woman_ and every strong_ man_ at some point in their life they breakdown and cry, and right now she was just about to breakdown and cry in his arms. "But that day when I called you, I didn't want to tell you what caused my bad day that day; I just wanted to hear your voice, but instead Beth answered your phone." Emily said, as she broke down in Hotch's arms and cried.

Hotch wrapped his arms tightly around Emily, and he whispered to her as he comforted her in his arms. "I'm _so_ sorry, Em for not being the one to answered my phone when you needed me the most on your bad day." He looked down at her and seen that she still had tears running down her face. "I feel like such a jerk for making you cry, and I'm sorry for that, Em," he said, as he rubbed soothing circles on her back.

"No, you are not a jerk, you were just trying to help me." Emily said, as she looked up at Hotch and wiped her tears away with the back of her right hand.

"Well, I felt like a jerk. I guess I have to make it up to you somehow, like maybe telling you my secret that I've been keeping for years." Hotch said with a little smile. "Would you like to know my secret?" he asked while smiling at her.

Emily looked at him and smiled at him, and said, "Yes, please."

"I'm in love with you, Emily Prentiss." Hotch said, as he finally revealed his secret to her.

Emily looked at Hotch and gave him a gorgeous smile. "Say it again," she said wanting to hear it over and over again.

"I'm in love with you, I'm in love with you, I'm in love with you," Hotch chanted, against her lips before giving her a kiss.

"I'm in love with you, Aaron Hotchner," Emily confessed with a beautiful smile.

"I know."

Emily gave Hotch another beautiful smile because she always knew that he knew that she was in love with him. And she knew that with him there was…

Better days ahead.

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"A good friend is a connection to life - a tie to the past, a road to the future, the key to sanity in a totally insane world." ~Lois Wyse

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**THE END.**

**Author's Note: Well? Like it? Love it? I sure would love to hear what you think, so please drop me a line. I always take all of your valuable feedback into consideration; after all, if it wasn't for you guys I wouldn't be a good writer because I do believe you guys make me a better writer when you review for any of my stories. A million thanks in advance.**


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